Rare Form of Measles More Common Than People Think: Jim Cherry, UCLA

OCTOBER 27, 2016

Amy Jacob

Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) has thought be a rare complication of measles, explained Jim Cherry, MD, of UCLA, at IDWeek 2016. What was once a considered a rare form, was later found, through much research, to be more common - particularly in a German study that reported in children under the age of 5, the risk was one in 17. Cherry shared that he and his team were able to study the California measles outbreak of 1989/90 to further their understanding and calculate the rate of SSPE in children under a year of age, one in 600, and the rate in children under 5 years was one in 1,300. The underlying factor he learned was that vaccinations were vital.